Monday, July 04, 2011

Happy Independence Day

Just a quick note, as, here in Portugal, the Fourth of July is not a holiday, and I have to get back to work. Think about revolutions in general, and ours in particular. What is the major difference?

In most cases, revolutionaries have little to lose. There may be educated leaders among them, but most of the risk is borne by people who own little to begin with, and whose only hope to gain something lies in the process of overthrowing their government.

In the case of the US revolution, the men who led started out with everything to lose. They owned land. They were prosperous businessmen and professionals. They had families, both in the colonies and back in England. Many of them had cordial relations with the king. Life was good to begin with, but they saw the possibility of something better in their future. In their eyes, liberty was worth the risk of their "lives, fortunes, and sacred honor."

I may be working today, but that doesn't stop me from celebrating that difference.